Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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PAGE TWO THE PRESS AND STANDARD, WALTERBOR 0, S. C. JAN. 8,1913. . SRASCAinWS CONOUSION- BY PARLEE COM M THE YISdOR A 8TMY OF SUCCESS WON BY A FAIIEI MY IN IBE MYS CORN CLUB. NOW HE CONVINCES BIS UNCLE TUT READING PAYS. * '‘Hump! I reckon’* how ye'U be wantin’ to farm the hall place short ly. 1 now It’* another fool Ide’ such •a ye’re ferever gittln’ out? of them books ye read. I s’pose ye figure that ye could raise enough ter git a bicycle or some more books, huh?” “No. Uncle Silas; even should my share of the crop be sufficient, I don’t think I should care for a bicycle. ' I mean to save the larger part of v my money—though I might buy a few books. I should like very much to ■tart a small bank account of my own.” “Well, I’ve half a notton ter let ye try It, if fer nothin’ else than to keepjre from spendin' yer hull spare time readln’ foolish books. If ye don’t raise more’n two bushels. It’ll be that much; an’ I reckon by next winter ye’ll be needin' some new clothes purty bad. Mind, ye're to do all the work in yer spare time; and, if ye start it, I want ye to see that the weeds are kept dow n, ’tany rate.” “Thank you. Uncle Silas. I think I shall be able to keep the weeds down, and l am going to hope for more than two bushels of corn to put toward buying my next winter’s clothing.” Silas Carter and his wife had lived on a farm. He had always lived on a farm. He was industrious,'and had obtained for himself a nice country home and a snug sum besides. Though he had succeeded, from a financial point of view, yet :t was due more to a happy combination of circumstances than sggacity. Si las Carter was Industrious, but not progressive. He was wonderfully set in his ways. His make-up seemed to be a combination of egotism and stubbornness. Nabf-dy tvec found favor in bis eyes ’iut nv .t complete victory over these prevailing traits In bis character. One of his whim* was that reading boots spoiled a hoy for the farm. Robert Newman was now seven teen. Being an orphan, he had long lived with his uncle. He had had to work very hard, and had been in school but very little. However, he had studied much during his spare time, and was beginning to see many errors in his uncle’s iarm methods; he saw that a farmer, as well as those at other vocations, needed an educa tion. A college course embodied his highest aspiration. In one corner of The farm wood lot there was a small patch nearly free of timber. Though only a few stumps remained In It, this corner had never been farmed. The wood lot had been used for years as a run for hogs. Silas Carter raised hogs on a large scale. In this corner of the lot he had put up a fence-rail crib and here he fattened ins hogs. The feeding of many hundred bushels of corn at this one place had resulted in the arcummulation of n large quantity of manure, possessing im mense fertilizing value. Silas was not the man to haul on. manure when its accummulation did not make it absolutely necessary. He had never come to regard it as a valuable fer tilizer. Two days before the above conver sation took place Robert had read an article in a farm paper describing a State corn-growing con.est. From It he learned that a one-hundred dollar prize was annually awarded to the resident of state in which Kooert lived who raised the largest amount of corn on one acre in one season, and that— to the eighth place frorii winner— minor awards were gjveu to others who raised the next seven largest crops of corn on lone acre. It was this article that had brought Uis mind to a new field of enterprise. I^or the first time he thought seriously of the possibilities of that corner in the wood lot. His mind leaped from this to the pile of manure so close and convenient. He thought of the big heap of idle rails in another part of the wood lot, that might be used In fencing of? the corner. Then he ’nought of how fertile the soil would be, never having been cropped. Robert had asked for the privil ege of fencing ofl - ihe corner of the wood lot with rome of the idle rails -a'V'r vv »•>“•" i “ the manure from the near-by feed lot. He h d agr-cd to do all the work in ids «pare time, and to use the team and i 1 ws only when thev were standing Idle. For ail this lie had asked for only one-half of the crop. Spring w rk came on fast. Rob ert began to fear that he might not find a time '.hen he rouid use the team. Bui at last It came. Silas an nounced at jthe supper table one Fri day evening that he was going to the tounty sect on the nex: cay. and that VUD „„„ Ul ine „, irn thV?h“ir<i""~V *«♦«' >‘e»r« before'Stlas o-nates, 1m feMtmed to tk# patch ro see how his devies was working. He flafg-f his heads with delight vhsa ho saw the water pour from the hose aad ripple la a little stream be- tweea the two rows et the lower eaa Mk. fttek. TWjw- J** « h 2 V wanted to see. The remeiaaer of theiUght he spent in pumping awhile aad then going to ^Je patch aad surface manured and the field plow ed. - 'For several evenings following the plowing, as soon as he had eatea hff supper he took the wheelbarrow and went hack the lane to his patch. Here, until too dark to see, he wheel ed some finer and more decayed man ure from the feed lot to the patch, and applied it as a surface dwsslng to the plowed groond. w In due time the patch was given s thorough harrowing, and was then leveled with a drag. Spring work was becoming so pressing now that Robert feared he would not get an Idle day to do this work, so he took the team back on a lew evenings— and accomplished 1* in that way The fifth day of May was the ear liest Silas Carter ever planted corn. He had become so eccentric that he looked on the planting or corn before that date as sure to bring failure to the crop. Robert looked on such precision as • unwise. Tie regarded weather conditions with good judg ment. as that which should deter mine the time for planting. At noon on the fourth day of May Silas finish ed the preparation o^ his soil for planting. It was the .-nest kind of weather for planting, but was before the fifth of May. Being Saturday. Silas decided to go to town in the afternoon, “Ye kin rig up the plant er this afternoon. Rob. and tnen shell seed corn. We’ll want ter make things hike next Monday.” he instruc ted as he drove off for town after an early dinner. Robert had shelled the seed corn in the evenings of the previous week. He soon coupled the planter together loaded a bag of corn—some that he had carefully selected for his need— hitched up the team, and was away to the patch. He not only d*I!«ed tee corn, but planted it unusually thick. “No flfth-^f-May system for me!” he exclaimed, as he « uhitche-l the tdam that evening and his chores. “I wonder what Uncle ‘• las will gay when he tees what I have done.” It commenced to rain on Monday, and it was the last of the week be fore Silas Carter rouid get to plant ing. It was warm, aowever. and what Robert had planted was germin ating and getting a nice start. Spring grew Into autnmer. Corn came up and had to be cultivated. Robert was so busy tending his un cle’s crop that he was unable to give his own crop much attention, except in the evenings. However, he en joyed nothing better than to take a io« and go back to hi# field iff the warm supiraer evenings, and there > go up and down the rows observing the rat'id growth his corn was mak- •r. He saw to it that a pulverized soil mulch was made off the surface after every rain. When th*vcorn was itmut one foot high, with wheelbar row and- shovel h** aga.a applied a ht surface coating of manure to ’iio patch. Tv o-thirds of Ju;y had passed Robert had the blues. He could Marie suppress the melancholy ha dejected spirits se*-;.ie«i to eviare. His corn hail grown luxuriantly. I* was almost twice as far along as Ins uncle's despite the unticness of the stand. It had exceeded his most am bitious dreams. But wtiain tue last few days his < herished hope of win ning at least one prize ;n the gontrst had slowly passed aw-y. For sever al weeks there had been no rain. The ground was drying out. Corn had reached the critical s:age. when the development required a great deal of moisture. Most farmers hid givenr-up all hope of anything near half a crop. Owing to the large amount of humus tho.Bol! there contained, and ihe care given to it. Robert's patch had with stood the drought far lietter than any furrounding corn. :.ut. at last, it was beginning to fairer la its rapid growth. Robert knew that s few more days of drought would suffice in barring it from the roarest. But h*> could not give up—there surely v. as some relief. Again it was after supper Bober? was hastening back ;o pile lane, im- nelled by a new idea. He was push ing a wheelbarrow, oa which was a 9 chaaifflag the Ua4 of Hik boos to tho next row. la Um morning he went to tho hoaos aad MR^d with tho efcorua. Ho moved woods all day. at night, again continued the proceed- .ngs of previous night. By morning he had covered the greater portion of the patch. Thoegh very tired aad .eepy, he felt a keea enttafaetioa in v hat he had done, once more his hopes were revived. Robert was accustomed to retir ing late and arising early, conse quently hUfabsence was detected oa neither of the two nights. He ob served his corn cloeely, and was de lighted to see it assume s marked freshness. Three days later It rained. Crop# revived, bat corn had received a dead ly blow. Robert’s patch, however, evinced scarcely an effect of drought. The patch was In a rather secluded place. Silas had sold his hogs, and not having occasion to go to the wood lot had not seen Robert’s patch for several weeks. He naturally sup posed that It had suffered by the drought, as had his ow-u. Harvest time came. Robert bad -worked hard with his uncle in cut- ;ing the stunted crop, and now his own had reached maturity. It was indeed an exuberant growth, both ear and stalk. He felt sure of get ting a place among the prize winners. Within the patch he had accurately narked off an acre. “How’s yer little patch cornin’ Robbie?” Silas asked one day at the dinner table, when nearing the end of his corn catting. "I s’pect. since the dry spell ye’d need a spy glass to tell there ever'd been any cor AT there. Do alt want ter hire a hand fer cuttin’, do ye?” “Well the dry weatner did hurt it some; but I suppose It could have q£en worse, and. as for a hand. I be lieve I can handle it myself.” return ed Robert, trying to appear gloomy. •I believe I will let it stand and husk it on the stalk. “Yes. I Mow that’ll be best; ’twill save ye a lot of hard srdrk.” sarcas tically chuckled Silas, as egotistically he leaned back in his cnair. and. nod ding in Robert’s dire-.* on. went on: “I thought ye was c.ore’n ye rotrid handy chew.* The rules of the contest stipulated were these: 1. That corn must be husked on the stalk between the first and fif teenth of November. 2. That the ground must be meas ured, and the corn husked and weigh ed in the ear, by three men appoint ed by the commissioners of the coun ty in which the corn was raised. 3. That, after weighing the pro duct of the entire acre, one hundred pounds of ehr corn should be select ed by said Chr<»e men aad by them shelled, and the sbehed corn weigh ed— which shall constitute a basis on vhieh to estimate the amount of shelbM rofn on the entire acre. It a as th" twenty-seventh of Octo ber. The dr.v before Mr. and Vra. ' > • : . Main Street, Postoffice Block, Wakerboro We beg to announce that we have moved into our NEW STORE BUILDING located on Main Street, next door to the Postoffice. Our new building is a great improvement on the old, and is modern in its fixtures and appointments. We have much more room here and more conveniences for our patrons and friends. . • . . We extend a cordial invitation to every body to come to see us, and let us show you • % our new store and up-to-date stock of Clothing, Shoes, Hats, Etc. You will be welcome. We wish for you all a most prosperous New Year. i Mam Streel—Postoffice Block—Walterboro should make Robert Newman the re- Ipient of the honors. Some thought th<* newspaper had made a mistake; .. , . 1 others, thai there wafa some crooked "arier l«>ft for ♦•asiern Pennsylvania , d a week vitli Mrs.'Carter's ! work so™’'* One man was just house- several pipe* wrenches, and a large reel of rubber -.ose which he had borrowed from a neighbor Through the wood lot there ran a smell creek, which lay several rods to the left of Robert's patch It was now quite low. but stilF running. At the point nearest this corner of the wobds. It ran througa a high bank, which sloped gradually to a point near the patch, where it declined at a still greater angle, thus making one end of thejiatch much lower than pood. Rob, and then I reck in’s how >ci4v n ftp up ver patch the rest o’ the time ’Pears to me ye’ll hav’ teer humn some if ye git it out at all this spring.'* he said. ‘ O. thunk you. But I believe PR get out ail rlrht. once I get started at it.” returned Robert. The next dav was a strenuous one. Robert had his chores done, break fast eaten and was on the Jump ii!, rarkness bade him cease at nielit He had buiU the fence and M l a thick layer of neb manure aj "U* d over the surface of much of ti e patch. “I think I can get s full a< r.» out or It all right.” Be said to himself ns be viewed the first day’s work for bin«. If. Robert’s vim *u d prii < .,|y increas ed as the season p opr< s«. d. Anoth er day to himself saw t:.o remaining had laid a string of iron piping from the creek to the feed lot to convey water to his hogs. This was now lr- :ig idle. Robert m*de his way directly to be creek. He first relaid the stria* of Iron piping, extending it from the creek bnak daw n the slope to the cen ter of the upper end of his patch. He next stood the pump tn the creek 8hort ,jn at noon, he Hv Operated. A littl* Hy bperkted. A little wooden trough connected the pump spout with Ihe too pipe. Robert then wheeled the barrow to the patch. Here he an- •»oled the rubber hose, attwhed one end to tty» iron pipe, while the other end was placed between two rows of corn at the higher end of the patch. He then returned to the ereek and began pumping. A full moon and a clear sky furniabed h:m with plenty of light. After pumping ror several to -cla:iv*s. For a I>»ng tinj‘- Robert ‘.iad been wond-rlng hov. .ic was to iply with those rules and not have its uncle kno. it. 1T<* considered time of this v.mt of h's uncle the •p^ertune time. Accordingly, the i.*xt day he \<*Red the county S'mt *n business. The cortimissioners ap .pointed the three men, and arraage- DHMits w«re conpletec. i.ariy Friday morning the three iui;. appointed men presented ttoom- at the farter tarm. Two wajt- •ns were in readiness for hauling Liter tb** measurement of the acre va* certified, the men wegan husking. Robert did no? dare put the corn in one of the rrtbs at the barn without e\poslng his scheme. ( oasequently hen a toad was husked, it was taken *o the farm scales, weighed, and then, on the way back to the patch, was < oop«*d into the rail crib in the wood !o*. Finally the last car was husked ami weighed and the totai amount cf shelled corn was determined. "Well. sir. Mr.. Newman, that acre made Jus* one hundred and forty sev er '•»t*nc!- :i* ft i*.cut»-e>,lit p mu Is.” ^a'd one f the men as he finish- »*«I the computation, and handed the paper to another for examlnatvn: 'That cir?a.n!y was big rorn." ® All information blanks and stato- *nmi*g v.-e.-v filled out arid forwarded tre three* men drove away Robert hr* at bed a *;«h of relief. The last formal procedure had b**en gone tb touch The nev f«»w Gays he finish- •d husking w hat «orn the re w as re naming in the patch, and got ev^ry thing in trim for his uncle's return. 0 • • • • • • * • • • It was the second day of December Silas Carter had returned from his vis’t and had got down to hard work, again. On this particular morning he had baul-d a lotd of wheat to majk- «t He had unloaded his wheat,aj the mill, and stopped at the grocery to do t-ome buying for Mrs. Carter. * "Hello, you. Si Carter.” came, from the groceryman. just as Silas stepped within the door. "I^s'pose you are ust dririn’ around these days tellla’ farmer# how to raise corn. How did you do it anyway. Silas?” Not being aware of what the gro cery man was talking about, and ron- s dering his poor corn crop, Silas readily misapprehended this sadden compliment. “I'd like fer ye to un derstand. Hinry Cooper, that I raise "ttaugb corn tey keep my family in bread and batter. w tany rate! Ye can’t say the time that I’ve got any thing here. Hinry Cooper, and didn’t par fer It—now. kin yer?” offering his explanation of the mat ter when Carter entered the store. A talk ceased, and with oue accord they waited for uti explanation di rect from him. When lie was de tained in the front of the store the men began to move forward. * "O you mt**underat.na :.i *. leaded Cooper, feeling some aiann at Carter's serious gesture. “None o’ yer backin’ down, no-\. I reckons I kin git jist as good gro ceries over at Jim Slate-’s. The pres ence of the men collecting about him only augmented Carter's wrath. The groceryman stepped behind a case while all eyes turned toward him. He picked out a cigar and of fered- it to Carter. “1 and Carter here were Just arguing about which of you men was the biggest liar. Car ter says the honor goes to Fete Boggs I stood for you, Sam.” This raised a laugh, which, in con junction with the cigar pacified Car ter. Observing this, the groceryman again undertook an explanation. “I suppose you have read ^today's Trib une, Carter?” he began. “Nope. The carrier don’t come by my place till nearly noon,” replied Carter, not wislfing to say that he did not take the'paper. ' Wei!, then, here ;s something that will likely interest you,” said Cooper, as he picked up the county daily, turned to the first page, and placed It in position on the ctgar case in front of Carter. Indicating the ar- . cl* w|th h!s finger, he added: “There look at that.” 'H’d raHier smoke.this cigar. Hin ry: it puffs first rate,” said Carter, not wishing to expose his ignorance. '•Ye do the readln’ an’ I’ll listen ter ye. That’ll suit me best.” « “All right, you listen,” said Coqner as he took up the Tribune and begafb: “ 'This county gets first place In the State Aere-of-Corn Contest. Robert ewman, a young farmer residing sev en miles north of this city, wins first prize. Corn grown ofl^ farm of Silas Carter’, ” Following this headline introduction. Cooper proceeded to read the half-column'article. Silas Carter stood with elbows and gaze on the cigar case, and with hi* hands he fumbled an automatic matchbox. He heard what the p.ro eery man w as reading. He wuz aw are that the (nen standing abont wer** watching him closely as they listened to the reading. Somehow he did not care to look up. He felt very uneasy. His face was flushed, ang he vas nervous. Was the groceryniafi rhad ing an article or was ne making up a The door opened, and two women en-Jkouhl be seen the Carter homestead. tere i'., ,,, . Carfer was pausing the wood lot. I here did you grow that corn, „ .k u. . . w: Si. and Vow does it come that you I Sudflwi1> j a ^uck him. He j et Robert have the honors?” asked | drove the team over to the fence, and Pete Boggs, as Cooper dropped the ,started for tne corner in which Rob- I .tper and attended his customers. lull’s patch v.as located. He had do- With this question from Fete , . . , . , , . Boggs, his near neighbor and close c,ded to po ,m ‘ r and ,ak « a look at 'friend, uncertainty as to the truth \he growth the corn had made, and of what he had just heard began to ,o satisfy his mind, it was an-hour be dispelled from Carter’s mind, yet till noon, and h>* would be at (With his agitation subsiding, he an- home by that time. He had reached swered: “Well. Pete, 1 reckon ye’re ' the corner of the woog :ot, and was knowin, more ’bout this thing than just passing the rail corn ertb. Hia me! Are ye sure it’s in that paper mind was so occupied with the events like Cooper's jist read in'? If Mis, it of the day that he haG forgotten hia ]’pears to me they’ve gone and made ' whereabouts. His gaze was down- a purty big mistake. I reckon Rob vard, and a large, yeiiow ear of corn Newman has jist fooled 'round till at 1 lying on the ground came within the last he's gone and got old Si Carter’s range of his view, tie stopped and foot in a trap. That’s how I figure picked it up. As he raised his head, it.” he concluded in a distressed, •» saw that he was jzear the corn meditative tone, somewhat to him-i crib. His perceptive faculties had self- i now regained normal acuteness. He “Why so? Didn't you have any- Instantly noticed that the crib was thing to do with it?” Sam Bowdcrs asked. | "With what? Let’c see that paper, Pete.; I hain’t got the hang of the story yet,” said Cam r, as he peered over Pete’s sbouhh-r. .ml saw his name in the large letters or the headline. full of corn; large yellow ears were protruding from many or the cracks. Silas bit his lip. Was he dreaming? Had the mental strain of the morn ing distracted his mind? He turned around, and looked . anouf him. Across the field he saw iua home. Over to the left was Robert's patch. f ’’Well, I'll just t»ll you what the Again he looked at»the crib. Yes, paper says. Si,” pi-rer interjected as he folded the paper. Then, turning around to Carter, he gave a verbal abstract of the newspaper report, concluding with, "Now, what we want to know is h<>w y.»u did that.” Pete Bigg's rehearsal had only augmented Carter's perplexity. “AH I kin say is that (tn-re s a mighty big smear somewh -re in that pln<e I s'pose they’ve g-it in s tn- 1 ■ somehow. I reckut’s I'd b< • gittin' home and seein’ wl. knows about it. D’ye Cpo. ■ .• like that could rake n, t trouble?” Silas Carter v m von a .4 “Come ’long Ja«k.' S^t^ral o»«-n had been sitting about r * uae laughter at his poor the Move in the rear of the •tore, ^ cor,, < “ ro P T Carter never felt alking about the corn contest. Am on* 80 **>M»*«1 before. them were two farmers from Carter’s neighborfcooc. It was a mystery with them all where Silas furier had raised corn good enough to make such a yield, aad why he The groceryman had reached the middle of the second paragraph. Car er’s fore (rears nee had reached I to lim* It. He was about to nave 'an explan ation, even by violence If necessary. a blackfinake whip h.-iir t r Ho* con tour of h home’s flank, and thu qoby rattle of the wagon oriiy tit-rensed. Silas was hurrying honv rram ’own. He tried to thin!;, 0 : t bis mind seemed confused. He < nul l develop no other theory e- cet.t that P.ob»rt had in some lllegitima-• -way endeav ored to obtain a prize a the cor., growing contest, and hi- guilt va* now about to bo exposed. He fear ed it might Involve’ 'litigation. “I always said that boy a readin'd make me "trodble. and now I guess it’s come at last.” he g.oined. as his mind entertained the scene of a court rboni's proceedings. And this time the whip left a mark across Doll’s hip. “Yes.«Bob did have a good start on that patch.” hv said to himself; “but the dry spell cook ed that. Why, he hasn * even husk ed it yet.”, He was tainklng of the effort Robert had made in the spring to grow a crop of corn on the little patch In the v ood lot. The road he was on ran past the wood lot A quarter of a mlh* farther on wa< a cross road, a half mile up W hi ch he knew where he was; but what did that crib of corn mean: He went over and sat down on an old log. He rubbed his eyes, and, then burying hia fate in his hands, enceavored to think. Litth w by little his mind dis sected matu-is. Presently he con cluded. "I'll jist go over an’ take d look at the paten, that ii tell the tory.” Before he reached the fence surrounding the paten ne saw he v is right. Tl e tali staiks visible above the fence sufficed to confirm •his views. When he reached the tence he stood for a. tong time and , ^azed on the thick tows of stalks. I Had such corn really come through ri.e lash of! tho summer's dry spell? Could It be that Robert had raised such a crib of corn on that little patch? Silas thrust his hands into uts po-kets, and walked slowly back to the log. Here he sat and gazeu on*x:»q crib for d long time. He Vas thinking hard. Was it possible that Robert, a seventeen-year-old bov, I.; i uki-n an acre of new ground, hvl attend ed it all in his spare time, ha l grown on it one hundred* and :or., seven bushels and twenty-eight poun-M ef corn, had won a one-hundred dollar 'prize—uas it possible? Silas Carter was not a man of emo tions, but his eyes filled with tear*. He had not been juxt with Robert. He had failed to see-what was in the hoy. He wiped another nig tear from his cheek as he arf-h-* and hastened toward his wagon! ‘ yes, he'si right and I hain’t. I guers rcactn’ books" ain’t the worst thing a farmer kin do. either”, he said to bitnself, as he pulled the team into tho road and proceeded homeward. “Her jist go- in’ to have all the books he V.iti read, and, if £i Carter's got t.uytn*ng ter say ’bout it, 1 reckon# ihat*boy'U be *